Our beautiful Heart blinks those dark, gorgeous eyes open. They are dazed and already red-rimmed from her pink tears.

"Baby?" she breathes. One of her hands comes up to cup her belly with mine.

She turns and looks at me, then my brother. Her eyes drift shut again, but a smile of pure joy curls up the edges of her lips. I keep my eyes on her face. She centers me, almost as if looking at her keeps my insanity at bay.

"We will take her to our home and let her rest," my brother says to me. "Don't worry about the father of her child. She is ours. The child is ours."

"You will not remove my daughter from this Palace," Nateos, the wily god of Death, orders. Orders us. Laughable. We are War. Besides, there are two of us.

Our Heart stirs in my brother's arms. A soft whimper rises and falls between us. Her soft murmur of agitation is like a dagger to the gut. The overwhelming urge to keep her safe and happy battles the urge to take her, now, and make certain that all of the world knows she is ours. It feels like a maelstrom whirling inside of me. Heat and fire and odd feelings of knowing, but not quite able to grasp the knowledge I need.

I know this is our female. That is what I'm holding onto. My brother shifts her delicately in his arms... what we're holding onto.

"My daughter will stay here."

He is our Heart's father. The bastard of the Underworld means something to our female.

"Fucking Death," my brother mutters, echoing my own thoughts.

"We need to go," I agree, grimly. Shards of life are seeping into my thoughts. A desert city in the above, a forest in the north, a pit in the Underworld, a battle of beasts, a clash of demons, anger and hurt poured over our heart... that can't be right... our hearts? Like liquid pain, a gilt of agony, hardening as it cools.

I look at our goddess. Cracks have formed in what I thought was an impenetrable shell. She is seeping in, her essence soothing the rage. At the same time, it's a familiar touch, her scent, her form, all beautifully familiar.

Panic crawls up my spine. We need to take her away. She has been lost to us, before, hasn't she? What enemies do we have that would take her from us? Inanji... that is one. Only one... there must be more. Who? Where?

"We need to leave," my brother mutters with a hot glare at Nateos.

"Baaabyyy," tiny stone hand touches my Heart's stomach reverently.

I look down at the ugly, little gargoyle. Are those... are those guardian gargoyles? A story drifts through my head. Gargoyles, defenders of the temples, known to be mischievous and sometimes outright destructive. They love children and... the god of Death gave them to his daughter as her companions.

I should know this gargoyle's name. Frustrated, I growl. The gargoyle squeaks and scampers away to huddle with four others. I can hear him chatter, 'baby' again in his broken language. They all become visibly excited.

My brother cradles our female to his chest. I step halfway in front of them. "We are taking our female home."

"You can't," Nateos replies.

I smirk, the iron-hot fire burning in my soul.

"That child was conceived in the Underworld. She must be born here. Or the babe will die at birth and your female will never forgive you," a matronly voice interjects.

I glance over at the mother goddess. "Mother of all," I greet her respectfully. "Is this true?"

Enlal walks over and starts to lay her hand on our female's belly.

Our goddess startles back to consciousness. "Don't you touch my baby!" she exclaims shrilly.

My brother steps away from Enlal with our female. "Shh, fiery one, don't fret. It's not good for the babe."

My skin itches. Deep inside something rolls, revolting at this situation. "We need to be with our female, alone." Enemies... no one loves us but our Heart.

One of the males surrounding us steps forward, "the Lady has rooms-"

"She will stay with us," I interrupt him. I glare at him. He, like so much here, is familiar, but not known. "Who are you?" I question fiercely.

"I am Nasir, War god," he says. "One of the Basru, Guardians of the Gates, Protector of the Lady Grief, Princess of the Underworld."

It strikes an odd chord. "The Basru?" I ask him.

"Yes, War god."

I nod at him. I feel an oddly rough little hand sneak into mine. I glance down. Large, round orange eyes blink up at me. The gargoyle gives me a toothy grin.

"Follloo," he says. He tugs my hand. I don't budge, frowning down at him. What is his name?

"Momo, he always liked you best," my goddess says. Her eyes are half-closed. She looks pale, stricken.

I smile at her, trying to offer comfort. I feel my hand being tugged again.

"Momo?" I ask the little beast. He just blinks at me. Socks. "Socks?" I say under my breath, confused.

"Yessh, follloo," he says again.

I take a small step. My brother goes with me. We make our way out of the throne room step by careful step. Nateos' keeps his eyes on us the entire time. Six of the male warriors fall into line behind us.

I tense with these unknown males at my back, letting my brother carry our female ahead of us. Should I kill them all? No... that's not right... they wouldn't die here, just be wounded. I... I was wounded... I did wound....

One of the males, a dark-skinned male of pure warrior ilk, sidles up next to me, his posture arrogantly confrontational.

"If she is pregnant, then one of you is the father," he tells me.

I give him the side-eye, noting that I am just slightly taller, a little broader, than this interloper.

"And you know the intimate details of my goddess' life how?" I ask him.

"I am close to her," is his bland reply.

I stop abruptly, turning and grasping his shoulder in a grip designed to crush the small bone in his clavicle. To his credit, he doesn't flinch. "Close?" I will rip him apart, easily, this interloper.

"She is my only reason for being here," he claims. His eyes bore into mine. "She is worth suffering the worst of torture for. Take note of that, War god."

My brother has stopped, leaning against the wall, still holding our female. His body is shaking slightly, eyes red as he stares, head tilted down, at the dark-skinned male. She looks worried as her dark eyes dancing between us all. I keep my eyes on her for a long heartbeat, letting her image sink in and settle the clashing emotions inside of me.

"You are part of this Basru?" I ask him coldly.

"Put me down," our Heart demands. She wiggles and my brother switches his gaze to her. A faint smirk crosses his face as she futiley struggles to be set down.

"Thelios," she says, "set me down." Bossy little thing.

My brother lets her put her feet on the floor, making sure that her body slides against his, slowly. Grinning, his anger abated, he only releases her when she huffs impatiently at him.

His arms part, letting her go with an exaggerated motion.

She hurries to walk to the dark-skinned male. I step into her path.

"Thane," she warns me. So fucking adorable.

I lean down and kiss the tip of her nose. She squeaks, leaping backward, then rubs her nose, glaring. "I want to speak with Lier, please. It's important." I remember this, teasing her. It's fun.

"Tell me, first."

She rolls her eyes. Apparently she is over her fear of us. It makes me smile broadly. She smiles tentatively back. Still wary, then. Then she stands on tiptoes and murmurs, "the babe is yours and Thelios'. There is no other male."

I lock my knees to keep them from shaking as pure joy slices through me. I do rub my chest, absently. The dead heart in my chest is alive again. This dangerous little creature in front of me with the dark, fathomless eyes and bright copper hair is able to create miracles with just a few words.

"Thank you, Princess," I hear the words tumble out of me, unbidden but no less true.

She smiles, then darts around me to speak with the male.

I meet my brother's eyes. He heard her soft avowal, too. He is smiling, looking at the floor, rubbing his own chest.

---

"I did not, um, you know, with Urto," I whisper to my brother.

He is bent over, ear tilted my way, careful to not touch me lest he incur the wrath of War.

"Truly, Mara? I will defend you regardless. But know that if the child is Urto's then it will be a god in full, capable of great power."

I slide my eyes to the twins. They are both watching intently. "Urto... he split himself in twine and forged himself onto my males' souls," I rush out.

Lier stiffens, then exhales slowly with a soft expletive. "That's unheard of, Mara."

I shrug helplessly, "I know what I saw, what I felt... what I still see." I look again at the new bonds. Eerily, the twin strands are drifting closer together. They looked frayed, but I notice that the strings of red and black that are peeling from the other strands are all reaching in the same direction. Like fingers, they are seeking each other.

"So, now the power and spirit of War is part of your Fated males? Fuck, that's crazy," he mumbles.

I rub my belly. There's no bump, yet. Father told them that the babe was conceived here, which means it must have been that time in the river. I was with both males that day.

"You're blushing, little one," Lier teases me.

"Just thinking," I murmur. "About the baby and how-"

"I really don't need to know the details," Lier cuts me off. "Once was bad enough."

Now I'm fire-engine red. I forgot about that little incident. Heat is terrible.

"I wonder," Lier says slowly, "would she have cared if I fucked my own sister?"

"Oh, gods." I clap my hand over my mouth. That's a disgusting thought for more than one reason.

"What's wrong, Princess?" Thane is by my side in an instant. He silently threatens Lier to step away. He does, but not very far.

"Just thinking of the past," I tell him.

He smiles and strokes my cheek. "If the baby is ours than we had a past? A good one?" he smiles at me happily.

"Good and bad," I reply helplessly.

His smile falls, but he nods in acknowledgement.

I wonder wildly, not for the first time, what will happen when they remember everything. I can already see more of my twins and a little less of Urto in their manner. They are settling into their new reality. It's not going to be easy, I can already tell. Both males are a morass of seething emotion. Unstable. And my father wants them to stay in our city?

I have destroyed one city, I won't let Ersetu fall to pieces from a War-rage.

Momo chatters are us and we all start to walk again. Thane has relaxed a little. I think the thought of the baby has left him feeling hopeful. Urto had wanted children, badly. Ironically, I don't think that Thane was as focused on children. If his treatment of Erra is any indication, then the proud new War god isn't the most fatherly of males. Thelios is much more paternal, or at least he was.

And that brings another worry to mind. How will these new, unstable gods, react to Poppy? Will they think that she's my natural child? Or, will Thelios not love her anymore? Will he deny her as his daughter, especially because I am having a new baby that is his blood?

All the more reason to keep Poppy away from them for now. It makes my heart ache. And another thought niggles... should I find the soul of Poppy's real mother and reunite them? Something dark twists in my gut. She's my daughter. I knew it as soon as Thelios handed her to me, starving and weak. Our bond is real, but I can see the faint lavender string coming from her, drifting off into the unknown. That other female is still connected to her.

Momo chatters excitedly. With a grand gesture, my gargoyle throws open the doors with a dramatic flourish.

He brought us to my father's mausoleum.

"This place is familiar," Thane mutters.

Maybe a mausoleum isn't everyone's first choice, but I don't want to go back to Urto's overly-warm rooms and my rooms are too close to my family's.

I walk inside first and immediately my vision goes to the cairns that my males were laid on for nearly a week. Their dried blood is gone. I watch Harku waddle over, a serious expression on his face as his bulbous eyes narrow. He looks over the floor, the slabs of stone, with the exacting eye that only Harku has. He seems satisfied and nods.

Momo grabs my attention, then, chattering and tugging at Thane's hand as he frowns, looking around the room.

Alnue takes my hand and coos. I start walking as he guides us through the central chamber and to the rear of the building. This time, Mishu and Mushu open the wide double doors with a flourish.

I gasp in delight. "It's beautiful," I whisper. It's a set of living quarters. Unlike my rooms in my father's temple in the above, this is high, airy, looking over the Crone River from an open balcony that extends from one end of the extensive space to the other. Gauzy, light grey curtains flap gently at each opening, carefully tied back with beaded ropes at exactly the same height.

The balcony is the first thing that draws your eye, but as I walk further into the room other details catch my attention. Mosaics on the walls tell stories of my own life in vivid, colorful detail. The floors are made of that intriguing white marble with the pink and red veins. There is a sunken tub in one corner right next to the balcony. Three cords hang on the wall and I can see that one is labeled "Mara." I choke out a sob when I recognize the handwriting.

"You like it then? No one ever wanted these rooms, they overlook the Field of the Lost, to the left."

"Patriarch!" In near-hysterical tears I fling myself into his arms, not caring in the moment at the agitation I can feel rising from my gods.

Patriarch Rimon is younger, healthier, which makes sense, but still so very familiar with his light blue eyes being attacked by bushy eyebrows.

"Oh, my sweet child," he says, hugging me tightly. "I've missed you!"

"I missed you, too," I cry into his chest. He is wearing the dark grey robes of his station, even here. At least this fabric doesn't burn when my tears fall onto it.

When I finally compose myself enough to pull away I smile a watery smile at my males. I will have to explain things to them until they remember... if they remember.

"Patriarch Rimon was my first Patriarch in the above," I say.

Thelios nods, not that interested as he explores our new rooms. Thane, however, is glaring at Patriarch Rimon with a suspicious frown.

"Lord Thane," Patriarch Rimon greets him with a wicked twinkle in his eyes.

My usually eloquent male just grunts and moves away.

"This is beautiful, Patriarch. How... how have you been? What do you do here? Is everyone else here? Did you get to find the male who was your Patriarch? How do you find each other in the Underworld?"

"Mara, Mara!" he laughs, cutting off my babbling. "One question at a time, yes?" He walks to a table that I hadn't noticed before and sits on a padded bench, patting the spot next to him. On the table's surface are scrolls.

I laugh softly as I sit. Isn't it just like Patriarch to make me study? At least the padded bench is an improvement. Everything in this suite is fairly luxurious. Not ostentatious, thankfully, just of high quality.

"Now, as for your questions. Most of the Patriarchs and some Postites live right here, in and around the mausoleum. So, it's fairly easy to find each other. Later, you can explore this place. It's a little like a temple within the Palace. The library is below this level as are most of the living quarters. Your gargoyles, who are amazing and incredibly wicked I must tell you, are fascinating. They helped put this suite together."

Patriarch frowns. "Some of their choices were a little... odd. I think you may have several stolen items in one of the cupboards and that little one stuck to Captain Thane keeps putting socks in the bed. Single socks."

I smile at Momo. At all my gargoyles. They are clearly happy here.

I hear an odd sound and look over, only to leap out of my seat. Sitting on the balcony is Thelios, with Holsten hovered over him, a needle and ink in his hands. Thane is watching, pointing out the tattoo of eyes that look like mine on Thelios' chest. Thelios shrugs off whatever Thane is saying. Thane throws back his head and laughs. Then he sits down, too.

"They are getting your name inked on them. Some old argument that they must have just remembered," Rolle sits down on the floor next to me. "Do they really have the War god inside of them? How the fuck, excuse me, Princess, does that work?"

"Gods do not have souls," Patriarch explains. "Any god can by changed or made into someone new, their power shared or transferred. It's nearly impossible, but Urto himself chose this."

"But, who are they now, Patriarch?" I ask in a soft whisper. Most of my Basru are on the balcony, a little good-natured pushing and shoving going on.

"They are the War gods. The city is already talking about them, the twin gods of War who belong to the Princess. You will have to start to explore the city, soon, child. Your deeds in the Field of the Lost are spreading like hellfire, too. Everyone has someone lost over the Gate."

"Oh," is all my befuddled mind can say.

"Look, my Firesprite," Thelios walks over proudly. "I remember I didn't have a tattoo for you, but my brother thinks that these must be your eyes," he points to his chest. "So I made them yours." My name swirls around the eyes, linking them together.

I smile at him, approving of the tattoo even though it feels as though I'm somehow bragging by having my name stamped on this male's skin.

"How do you like this?" Thane struts over. My name on his skin is vertical, right over his heart all the way down to his waist. "Mine's bigger."

"Mine's fancier," Thelios says immediately.

They both growl at each other, but it's a mocking, lighthearted sound. Tears prick my eyes. Whatever result Urto has caused in my males, at least now they are like true brothers.

"Our Heart, what's wrong? Do you not like them?" Thane cups my cheeks and pulls me into his chest, concern dancing in his eyes.

I shake my head, 'no.'

"Bed then, you must be tired." He's right, I'm exhausted, but the idea of sleeping with both of my males, but not-my-males, has me on edge.

I'm guided into a large room to one side of the suite. It's a bedroom, with an enormous bed in the center that I think I recognize. Urto's bed has been dragged here. The covers and pillows are a mix of my own and his.

A soft pat on my bottom makes me jump. "Anything you don't like we will change, tomorrow. For now, let's sleep," Thane says gently.

"Only sleep," Thelios reassures me.

I nod, removing my heavier outer skirts. I would love to bathe, but now that I have their reassurances, the bed is calling me like a lodestone.

I crawl into the center, fairly certain that this is where I will be sleeping for the rest of eternity. Curling onto one of the favorite furs from Urto's room, I snuggle in and wait for sleep to come.